Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023 | 2 a.m.
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I choked on newly elected New York Republican Rep. George Santos’ explanation that he never lied about being Jewish, but that he was “Jew-ish.” This, even though the lie was followed up with several other lies regarding Santos’ alleged higher education, employment background and his mother’s death as a result of 9/11 injuries.
While Santos would like to sweep these matters under a rug, he told voters in his district that his Jewish grandparents fled Europe during World War II. He also made a political appearance at a gala to support white nationalists, an odd choice of companions to a purported grandson of Holocaust refugees.
Such hypocrisy is pointed out by Jeffrey Salkin in his Dec. 29 article on religionnews.com, “George Santos lied. Here is why it matters.” Salkin describes Santos as a poseur, a wannabe and a liar, and further describes his district as being highly populated by Jews and having typically voted solidly Democratic.
So while Santos wants us to believe that he told voters he was “Jew-ish” and not Jewish, and that he’s only an embellisher and not a liar, his actions and obvious motive prove otherwise.
Hypocrites lack loyalty, faithfulness and reliability. Likewise, Salkin pens a memo to Santos which reads in part, “I hope you are disqualified from taking office. An honorable person (a ‘mensch’, as your ‘Jewish grandparents’ — ha! — would put it) would step aside.”
